The North’s official Korean Central News Agency quoted General Jang Jong-nam as saying that “there remains between the North and the South only physical settlement of returning fire for fire.”

The North has lashed out with increasing frequency at a Seoul government that has halted unconditional aid and linked South Korean assistance to progress in NorthKorea’s nuclear disarmament efforts.

In late June, NorthKorea’s military vowed to retaliate for anti-Pyongyang signs posted at front-line South Korean army units.

The two Koreas are technically still at war because their 1950s conflict ended with a cease-fire, not a peace treaty.

Their animosity has deepened since NorthKorea allegedly torpedoed a South Korean warship in March last year. The North also shelled a South Korean border island in November. A total of 50 South Koreans were killed.

In May, NorthKorea threatened to attack because South Korean troops used photos of the ruling North Korean family as targets during firing drills.